


He Loved You Very Much

by hattiefox



Category: Ozark (TV)
Genre: Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Pregnancy, Season 3 Spoilers, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:20:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24243448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hattiefox/pseuds/hattiefox
Summary: Takes place after the end of Season 3 (spoilers!). Ruth goes to see Wendy and Marty at their office to tell them some unexpected news.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 10





	He Loved You Very Much

Each step felt heavy, like her feet were tied to rocks that kept trying to pull her down to the ground, slowly, rhythmically, relentlessly.

It had been two weeks since she “quit” the casino, and the entire Byrde operation. Marty and Wendy had disappeared to Mexico, which she only knew because she stopped by the casino for her last paycheck and ran into Charlotte.

“You even fuckin’ old enough to be in here?” she’d said when she entered the office.

“I’m just picking up some things for my dad,” Charlotte said, rolling her eyes. Ruth was glad that FBI agent wasn’t there, though she was probably close by.

“Where’s your dad?”

Charlotte stilled, the papers in her hand resting on the desk.

“What?” Ruth took a step forward. “What happened?”

“They’re meeting with him. With Navarro.”

Ruth’s eyes widened. “In Mexico?”

“Yeah.”

She hadn’t stayed long after that, but told Charlotte that she and Jonah could call her if they needed anything.

Now she stood in front of the Byrde’s office building, her heart beating so hard it was beginning to close up her throat. She had to go inside. She had to tell them. She had texted Marty early that morning, praying he was back in town and not dead somewhere. She tried not to care, tried not to stare at her phone for the thirty-two minutes it took him to respond.

_Yeah, we’ll be at the office this morning. Stop by whenever._

She took a deep breath, pushing open the door and heading to their office. She needed to tell them. They deserved to know.

Wendy sat at the desk, phone in hand, texting furiously. Marty sat with his laptop open in the chair by the window. Both looked up when Ruth entered. She leaned against the doorframe, her hands in her pockets. 

“Well hey there.” Wendy’s smile was as warm as ever. Ruth searched her eyes for any sign of what might’ve happened in Mexico. She wanted to know. But she didn’t work for them anymore, so she shouldn’t care. At least that’s what she told herself.

“Hi.”

“How’ve you been, Ruth?” Marty closed his laptop, reaching down to place it in his bag. He sat back up, hands folded in his lap. “Everything ok?”

Ruth swallowed, tears already threatening to fall from her eyes. “Yeah, I...I saw Charlotte at the casino when you guys were...out of town.”

Wendy and Marty shared a look, but quickly turned their focus back to Ruth.

“It was definitely an eventful week for our family.” Wendy sat back in her chair, crossing her legs. “But everything’s fine. We’re safe.”

Ruth nodded, looking down at her shoes.

“Is that why you came by, Ruth?” Marty’s eyes were curious, and Ruth knew she wasn’t hiding her emotions very well.

“Sorta,” she replied. “I also wanted to talk to you both about somethin.’ I don’t really know who else to talk to about it.”

A look of concern came over Wendy’s face and she got up, coming around the front of the desk and gesturing for Ruth to sit. “What is it, honey?”

Ruth took a seat and Wendy leaned against the desk, facing her. _Just say it, Ruth._

“Um...I wanted to talk about Ben.”

Wendy sighed, crossing her arms. Her voice was tired. “We’ve already talked about Ben.”

“Yeah, but I guess I have something I need to say.”

“Okay,” Marty said, standing and moving over to the desk to stand by his wife. “We’re listening.”

Ruth took a deep breath, looking down at her hands. “Ben and I really loved each other, ya know?”

Wendy’s face softened, and she uncrossed her arms. “We know.”

“I hadn’t really...felt that way. Ever, about anyone. In a lotta ways he was too fuckin’ good to be true.”

Wendy’s eyes began to glisten, but she didn’t say anything.

“He loved you very much, Ruth,” Marty said. His mouth formed a straight line, as it always did when Ruth tried to tell him how she was feeling.

“Yeah,” Ruth said, wiping a tear away with the back of her hand. “I wasn’t expectin’ that. To be loved that much.”

Wendy swallowed, nodding. “He was always really good at loving.” She smiled a little, and Marty placed a hand on her back, rubbing softly.

“I just keep thinkin,’” Ruth said, tears falling freely now. “What would’ve happened if he wasn’t so sick. If we could’ve…” She looked out the window, trying to avoid the thought. She’d been trying to shake that fantasy from her mind since the moment she saw Ben hit Marty that night at the fundraiser. That was when she knew. Out of all the people she could’ve fallen in love with, she’d chosen one that was so unpredictable that she wasn’t sure either of them would be around to see a future together.

She was right to worry, she thought as she watched a tree sway through the window outside the office. Or maybe she hadn’t worried enough.

“He was very sick,” Marty said, putting his hands in his pockets. “I’m so sorry things happened the way they did. We--” he glanced at Wendy, who was looking down at the ground. “We’re just really sorry.”

“Well that’s what I wanted to tell you.” Ruth clasped her hands together tightly. “That I guess I’m sorry too. Especially now.”

“Why especially now?”

Ruth swallowed, her whole body beginning to tremble. She closed her eyes. “I’m pregnant.”

The silence was deafening. She didn’t want to open her eyes, to see the disappointed look on Marty’s face, and the hurt look on Wendy’s. She’d told Ruth not to get involved with her brother, that it was dangerous. But Ruth hadn’t listened, and now here she was, carrying the baby of a dead man she still loved very much.

“Ruth?”

The voice shook Ruth from her thoughts. She opened her eyes, and Wendy was kneeling in front of her. “Are you sure?”

Ruth nodded. “Yeah.”

Wendy took a deep breath, then took both of Ruth’s hands in her own. “We can help, okay? Whatever you need, and whatever you want, we’ll support you.”

Ruth’s vision was blurred as she cried silently. “I thought you’d be mad.”

“Sweetheart,” Wendy sighed, squeezing her hands lightly. “I’m not mad. We love you, okay? We really do. And what happened…” Wendy closed her eyes for a moment, blinking back tears. “What happened wasn’t your fault.”

Ruth let out a sob, her whole body convulsing. “If I hadn’t asked Darlene to get him out he would still be alive.”

Marty came to kneel next to his wife, placing a hand on Ruth’s forearm. “You can’t blame yourself, Ruth. Okay? Ben wouldn’t want that.” He reached up to brush a tear from Ruth’s cheek, and she wondered if quitting the Byrdes wasn’t actually her best idea. They’d changed her life. A lot of terrible things had happened since they arrived, but she also couldn’t ignore the fact that they’d given her stability, a real job, and--she realized now as they knelt before her--a family.

“What am I gonna do?” Ruth asked, her breaths short as she tried to steady herself. “I don’t know if I can have a baby.” 

Wendy smiled, bringing Ruth’s hand up and placing a kiss on her knuckles. “It’s going to be okay. _You're_ going to be okay. We’ll make sure of it.”

And for some reason, despite everything, Ruth believed her.


End file.
